Daniel Meltzer

Daniel Julius Meltzer (December 17, 1951 – May 24, 2015) was an American lawyer and law professor who taught at Harvard Law School. He worked in the Obama Administration as Principal Deputy Counsel from January 2009 through June 1, 2010. Daniel Meltzer's uncle was Edward H. Levi, who served as United States Attorney General under Gerald Ford and as president of the University of Chicago (1968–1975).

Meltzer joined the Harvard Law School faculty in 1982 as assistant professor, was promoted to full professor in 1987, served as associate dean 1989–93, was named the Story Professor of Law in 1998, and the vice dean for physical planning in 2003.

Meltzer co-authored several books on the federal court system, habeas corpus, and other subjects with Richard Fallon and David L. Shapiro. Criminal procedure was another of his specializations. Meltzer later declined the appointment for health reasons.

White House appointment Meltzer was appointed Principal Deputy Counsel to President Barack Obama in January 2009, deputy to Counsel Greg Craig. Meltzer had originally agreed to serve in the position for one year but agreed to stay longer to help in the transition from Craig to Robert Bauer early in 2010. Returning to Harvard in mid-2010 allowed Meltzer to resume his faculty position within the preferred two-year leave tenure. At the time of his resignation, his service for the administration was noted for efforts to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, related policies affecting terrorism detainees, anti-abortion issues in the health care reform debate, and preparation of Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor in her 2009 confirmation hearings. Also noted was close work during his tenure with the acting leader of the Office of Legal Counsel, David J. Barron (also a fellow Harvard law professor), and with United States Associate Attorney General Thomas J. Perrelli, both in the Department of Justice.

Personal life Meltzer died on May 24, 2015, from cancer. Meltzer was married for 34 years to Ellen Semonoff, His son, Jonathan Meltzer, was a 2014 Bristow Fellow and clerked for Justice Elena Kagan on the Supreme Court in 2015.